IN COMBAT ZONE

Waikato Times, Volume 132, Issue 22155, 29 September 1943, Page 3

IN COMBAT ZONE

NEW ZEALAND TROOPS RECORD LANDING MADE GENERAL’S WARM TRIBUTE (Official War CorresDonaent, N.Z.E.F.) GUADALCANAR, Sept. 28. “ I have just noted with great pleasure the splendid performance of elements of the New Zealand Division during their recent disembarkation. This excellent effort augurs well for the success of future operations and reflects the high state of morale, discipline and training attained by all ranks in the units concerned. Please accept this expression of my appreciation and convey my personal congratulations to all elements of the command.” This message from an Allied Commanding General in the South Pacific area was received by the General Officer Commanding the Third New Zealand Division, Major-General H. E. Barrowclough, soon after the arrival of New Zealand troops in

a forward Pacific area. As a frank testimony to the efficiency of the New Zealanders in their first landing in the combat area, this expression of a high officer’s opinion was shared by all Allied officers and men who witnessed the landing operations. One officer who had served with the United States Marine Corps in the original .Solomons landings the year before and who has been with the Dominion troops since their departure from New Caledonia, found his estimated unloading time undercut by 40 per cent. Keenness For Job

The Maorilanders shifted themselves and their gear, rations, vehicles, guns and ammunition from ship to shore 10 per cent faster than any troops had previously landed in tl?at area and though they sweltered their way across the sand in uncomfortable heat their keenness for the job emptied the landing craft as fast as they could tumble their ramps into the shore. Ship officers on the transports, which turned round in the shortest time on record, signalled the Allied command of the New Zealanders’ performance and the Allied Command added its congratulations to the New Zealanders’ General Officer Commanding. A copy of that message is now in the possession of the officers commanding the units concerned. First Taste of Combat Japanese bomber aeroplanes gave the New Zealand troops in the Pacific their first taste of combat very soon after the Division’s arrival in the forward area. In the light of a full moon emissaries from Tojo’s air force held a reception for the new arrivals for several nights in the first ten days, and though the New Zealanders suffered no damage or casualties the boom of a few poorly directed bombs and the roar of antiaircraft guns sent the men hot haste for their foxholes.

It does not pay to be curious in an air raid. The anti-aircraft guns have a nasty habit of showering shrapnel over a wide area, as a few New Zealanders craning their necks in the air learned early in the piece. The whine and “plonk” of bits of shrapnel are a sobering influence on the most adventurous souls. The cooks at one camp found a sizeable chunk of shell outside their open fireplace one morning. One man stopped a crack on the shoulder his first night ashore. The jolt was the worst part of it. As a gentle introduction to realistic war noises Tojo’s visits were warmly appreciated. As a temporary disturber of a night’s sleep they were of some slight nuisance value. As a demonstration of Japanese formidability they were an unqualified failure.